


Our Little Piece of Sunshine

by Gem_In_Eye



Category: Supernatural
Genre: AU, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - Children, BFFs, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Drug Abuse, Drug Addiction, Heartbreak, Hurt Dean Winchester, M/M, One Shot, Profound Bond, Sad, Teenagers, Toddlers, Unhappy Castiel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-17
Updated: 2015-04-17
Packaged: 2018-03-23 10:31:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3764845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gem_In_Eye/pseuds/Gem_In_Eye
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Destiel One-Shot AU!</p><p> <strong>This is the story of Dean and Castiel as told by an unusual spectator.</strong><br/><strong>It is the story of two best friends,</strong><br/><strong>Two people who were always meant to be together,</strong><br/><strong>Who continue return to each other till the end.</strong></p><p> <em>*Mentions of alcoholism, drug abuse and heartbreak*<em></em></em></p>
            </blockquote>





	Our Little Piece of Sunshine

_I am here still waiting though i still have my doubts,_

_I am damaged at best, like you've already figured out._

_I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing,_  
_With a broken heart that's still beating._  
_In the pain, there is healing,_  
_In your name I find meaning,_  
_I'm barely holdin' on to you…_

 **Broken,** Lifehouse

* * *

 

I may be just an old orange tree.

I may have lived my life in a very small part of this huge, huge world.

But I have a story to tell. And even though the story isn’t really mine, I feel as if I am a part of it because I have seen everything, experienced everything – the joy, the hurt, the grief and the pain.

I have felt it all.

The first distinct memory I have is of me being plucked out of my fruit – my home... I was being taken away, I felt vulnerable and unprotected. I was terrified, I didn’t know what was happening to me. The next thing I felt was a small pair of hands, lowering my young, frightened self into the ground. They covered me with soil and I had felt warm again. And while they were covering the hole I was in with soil, I could hear laughter, voices. Too young and petrified to even try and understand what the voices were saying, I lay there in the soil wondering what was happening. But it was incredibly warm and comfortable and I think I fell asleep. Not for long though.

I woke up with a jolt when I sensed something wet, someone was pouring water down the soil I was covered up in. However, it didn’t feel weird or uncomfortable at all. I woke up then, and I have never slept since.

You may not realize this but germination is the most difficult process a plant has to go through. It is painful and I felt like I was on fire. It was worth it though because when my head poked out of the ground I was buried in, I was greeted by bright sunshine. I swayed in the cool summer breeze and reveled in the beauty of the world around me. It was all so new and amazing for a newborn plant. I was awestruck. I had only been actually alive for a few hours when I heard the sound of footsteps coming towards me and I could hear excited shrieks from the distance.

They were humans, human children actually – two boys. They gazed at me with wide smiles and giggled. One of the boys with sparkling blue eyes and dark hair seemed particularly pleased _“Look! We created that. We did that. A little baby plant. Wow!”_ he breathed, his hair blowing all over his face in the wind.

They stared at me for a long while, talking and grinning. I could sense that they weren’t dangerous, they didn’t pose any threat to me and I relaxed. I listened to the young humans talk about their kindergarten teacher and their friends, about the little things in their lives. They talked about everything. They bragged about their families and tried to best each other in everything, it was quite amusing to listen to.

I was sad to see them leave but before they left, the little boy with sandy blond hair leaned towards me _“Hey, don’t be scared all alone little plant, you are ours and Cas and I… we’ll come visit you. Every day.”_ He whispered to me. When he looked away he let out a startled yelp to see that Cas had run further away and whizzed past me, trying to catch up.

The next few years were the best years of my life, the children visited me all the time be it rain or shine. They brought their toys on most days and it was amazing to watch them play. Cas loved to draw and on some days he would bring his little crayons and drawing sheets and they would sit quietly for hours – Cas working on his drawings and the boy – Dean fiddling with his tiny trucks and cars. On other days, they would run about screaming and yelling, chasing each other. It was our spot. It belonged to the Dean, Cas and me. No one else came. And we didn’t need anyone else – it was our little piece of sunshine.

* * *

 

I was around five years old when the children suddenly stopped coming to visit me. It had been four weeks since I had seen them and I was lonely. Mostly though, I was worried. I didn’t understand why they weren’t around anymore. I had almost given up hope of seeing them again when one day I saw the two of them running along the hillside, coming to see me.

They sat under my branches and talked. From their conversation I gathered that the two of them had made other friends at school and no longer wished to spend all their time with each other. In typical primary school fashion, boys who clung to each other all the time were seen as weird and teased mercilessly. Dean had become fed up of all the taunting and had stopped talking to Cas who had been hurt and ignored him in return. Both of them pretended not to care. But eventually, it got too much for the children and they ended up here, they made up sitting under my branches and hugged it out. They promised to hang together here every day and parted with huge grins on their faces.

Over time, I forgot about the fight and assured myself that I wasn’t going to be left alone again. The next two years were blissful, the kids played near me and even brought their schoolbags and completed their homework together sitting under their very own tree.

When I was six years old I realized that all the trees around me bore flowers and fruit. I didn’t. All the other trees had regular visits from the little creatures of the hills. But I didn’t mind – I had the children and they had me.

It is now that I realize that I shouldn’t have taken their company for granted, they were growing older and the regularity of their visits began to reduce. They apologized to each other for missing their time together but I had gotten to know the now teenagers well over the years and I could see what they refused to put into words - they no longer enjoyed their time together. Their conversations were strained and the laughter was dry. I began to realize that it was only a matter of time before they parted ways.

They had a huge fight one day and I could only look and not offer any help as they hurled curses at each other. I didn’t know what they were fighting about. But after that day, they stopped coming to see me together. Dean visited me a lot more often now. He’d sit under me and listen to music or walk around me, memorizing his textbooks. Even though I missed the laughter I was glad for the company.

One day he sat beneath me and I saw tears cloud his eyes. He began to speak to me. _“I miss my friend,”_ he whispered _sadly “I don’t know why he is doing this. I walked in on him and his friends smoking the other day, they were laughing and puffing that vile stuff. When I called out his name, he pretended not to know me, his friends called me all sorts of cruel names and he just stood there. I couldn’t do anything but leave. Fuck.”_ He choked back a sob. _“I don’t think he is the cruel one though, his parents… they fight a lot. Mom says that they are going to get a divorce. But I still don’t understand why he is doing this to himself. He misses school a lot, does God knows what with those people, Alistair, Meg - some of them are even old enough to be in college. He has this cold, emotionless look on his face. It is almost as if he is wearing a mask. I have no idea why I am telling all this to a tree. I just… I don’t know what to do.”_ His face hardened after his monologue. _“I don’t want to care anymore.”_ He said. _“I am done trying to help him.”_

Dean’s visits declined after that day, I could sense that being here was hard for him now. That didn’t mean I didn’t miss him. I did. I felt so alone. He didn’t abandon me altogether and still visited me sometimes. And I was grateful.

* * *

 

It was a full moon that late summer night when I saw someone coming up the hill. I had never had visitors in the night and I felt scared. As they came closer I realized that I was the two of them – my friends. I had never been so relieved.

My relief was short lived though, the Cas’s face was pale and white as chalk. Dean was sobbing silently as he lay him down underneath my branches. “ _Cas. Buddy, don’t go. I need you, you are family. I need you_.” I feared the worst. Thankfully the boy was breathing, when he woke up and began to throw up everywhere. His eyes were red and sunken. He seemed like a stranger.

When he was finished he looked up at Dean, trying to say something. He passed out before he could. Dean and I were up all night. Looking at our friend, we were freaking out. As the sun came up the following morning the Dean tried waking up Cas _“Come on! Our parents are going to kill us.”_ He urged.

 _“Let me sleep. Whatever. My parents don’t care. They don’t care about anything. It was just harmless fun.”_ The Cas grumbled.

 _“You listen to me. This was fun for you? Fun? Well… good for you! You can have all this fun alone next time. It is **not** fun for me, seeing you like this. You turn up at my house all the time this way - half dead, drunk, and high on drugs. Sammy freaks out. Mom keeps telling me to talk to you. But you never listen, you never answer when you are sober. Do whatever you want! I am not going to be part of this fun anymore. I hate you.”_ screamed Dean.

He stomped away leaving Cas stunned, staring at Dean’s back with a bewildered expression on his face. This was the first time Dean wasn’t the kind, caring friend he’d always been. Dean had a strong personality but all of it had always withered around Cas. But not today. Cas needed a reality check and I felt an odd satisfaction to see him finally stand up to him.

Dean stopped coming to visit me altogether. I guess it was his way of severing ties completely. I wished he Months went by without a visit from either of my two friends. I had given up all hope.

* * *

 

One day I saw a lone figure trudging up the hill. It was Cas. He looked different, in a good way. His face was no longer pale, and he no longer looked worn out and weary. He came and sat down.

 _“Hey old friend, I guess you are wondering about what I am doing here… Alone. I just. I… I miss Dean so much. I wanted to be here. I feel closer to him here somehow. He doesn’t speak to me anymore. He has helped me so much – all those nights I ended up at his place in disgusting states, he was there for me.”_ The boy began. “ _He looks past me every time our eyes meet, and his show no hint of recognition. I gave up all that stuff you know - I could see myself becoming someone else, someone he didn’t want to be near to anymore. I told him that I quit. He doesn’t care. I can’t believe I lost him. Lost my best friend.”_ He sighed.

Seeing Cas like this, the same way his best friend had been all those months ago hurt me. I wanted to do something. Wanted to help. Wanted to let him know that Dean did care. I couldn’t. I could just stand and watch as their lives fell further apart.

One day I woke up to find Cas sitting under me, his back against my trunk. He looked up at me and said _“I asked Dean to meet me here and he refused immediately. But then I told him if I or our friendship meant anything to him, he had to come. I am going to wait right here. I know he is coming. I know it.”_ I knew he wanted to believe so badly. But I didn’t have much hope left. I had waited the same way for the two of them for years, waiting to be greeted by disappointment each time.

He waited and waited and he didn’t move all day. The sweltering heat of the scorching summer Sun didn’t deter him. He continued to wait, looking over the hilltop, waiting for his best friend. I could see that he was in love with Dean now. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen it before, I had been part of their story for so long. It took me so long to see it. They had a profound bond. I wished that he could see that too. I hoped he would come.

The last rays of the sun were setting across the hill when I saw a shadow moving towards us. It was Dean. He was here.

The moment he reached close enough to hear Cas shouted _“I am so sorry. I am sorry. I never should have hurt you like that_.” His eyes were glistening.

As the two kissed in the setting sun, I felt happier than I could ever hope to feel. Their eyes were wet as they finally confessed their feelings, after all this time.

* * *

 

The days passed by and the two of them went off to college. They visited me during their holidays and then the three of us were together again. It was in my shade that the Dean got on one knee and asked Cas to marry him. It was here where they got exchanged their vows, surrounded by happy families and friends.

And it was here where Dean, who had grown up to be an incredible man was laid to rest when he passed away fighting in Iraq when he was twenty nine. The day he died, that was the day when I found myself covered with beautiful blossoms in the morning. But the very next day, the flowers shriveled up and fell away. They had bloomed just for a day, just for him.

Cas just lost his best friend and tried hard to fill the huge void in his heart. He never married again. Every morning at dawn he would bring little children from the village nearby and taught them in my shade. He sat where he and Dean had sat down years ago and re-lived the memories. It was only when the children would leave that he would let the tears flow freely from his eyes. I know what he was going through, he was haunted by the past and so was I.

Cas had grown older in front of me, from a young man he had become middle aged and now he has reached old age. As have I. And he still sits alone in my shade now sometimes, dreaming of a simpler time, a happier time. I dream with him.

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
